Build Muscle, Lose Fat

            Everybody wants to build muscle and lose fat and get that sort after ripped muscular physique that only the dedicated few achieve. This is not usually due to a lack of effort. Rather, most people don’t know how to properly plan a workout routine designed to promote maximum fat loss. A well designed fat loss routine is multi-faceted; there are many variables that determine how successful one will be at being able to build muscle and lose fat. Before someone even so much as looks at a treadmill or a weight, they should examine their diet.

DIET - The diet that is used on a fat loss program is the ultimate determining factor on whether or not you will lose the weight. All the running in the world won’t do a thing if you are taking in excess calories (especially from the wrong sources such as sugars). Your diet when trying to build muscle  lose fat should have you eating around 500 calories below maintenance per day.  Besides focusing on staying in a caloric deficit, a fat loss diet should be based around the following:
1. High protein (1-2g per pound of bodyweight)
2. Low to moderate carbs (low carbs on non-training days, moderate on training days)
3. High EFAs
4. As little sugar as possible.
5. No carbs after 6 PM!!

         By following a diet such as this one, you are priming your body to burn fat instead of muscle. By cycling your carbs, your body gets the nutrients it needs on your strenuous workout days, and you don’t consume unnecessary carbs on your easier, non-training days. The high amount of protein helps to keep your body in an anabolic state and wards off catabolism. EFAs are essential due to the fact that you will be taking in lower carbs than usual. The EFAs help to give you energy and to keep your metabolism running optimally. The last thing you want when dieting is a slow metabolism. Sugars are predominantly stored as fat, so you want to avoid them at all costs. The one time sugars are OK to have is post- workout, when an insulin spike will serve you well. One of the most important things about this diet plan is the 6 PM carb cutoff. By not eating carbs at night, your body depletes your glycogen stores while you sleep. When you wake up and do your cardio, your body will turn to your stored fat for fuel since there is little to no muscle glycogen left to burn.

WORKOUT - The best fat loss workout is a mix of heavy training and cardio. I believe that training heavy is the best way to train when dieting for a few reasons. One, I believe that heavy weights are the best for building muscle and improving strength. If you can keep your strength gains going up while dieting and doing your cardio, you are in for one successful fat loss outcome. I would set up my trainers on a three day, M/W/F training split. The days would e divided up as upper body days and lower body days. This would have you training upper body twice the first week and lower body twice the second week, which is a good way to shock your muscles. The split focuses mainly on compound movements, which helps to keep your body releasing growth hormone and to ensure as much strength and muscular growth as possible while dieting. It is very important to keep a logbook of your exercises. Note the weight that you used and the number of reps that you got on each and every exercise. This will help you to track your progress and determine whether or not you are dieting too hard or not (if your poundages begin to drop quickly and steadily, you are dieting too hard and should examine your diet). The key is to take it slow when dieting, which will allow you to keep almost all of that muscle you worked so hard to build.

Here is the two week split that is to be repeated once the first two weeks are up:

Monday 1: Upper Day One
Bench Press – 2 sets of 8-12
Military Press – 2 sets of 12
Skullcrushers – 2 sets of 15
Chins – 2 sets to failure (add weight if you can get over 15 reps)
Barbell Rows – 2 sets of 10

Wednesday 1: Lower Day One
EZ Bar Curls – 2 sets of 12
Hammer Curls – 2 sets of 15
Seated Calf Raises – 1 set of 15 (with a 5 second pause at the bottom of each rep)
Stiff Leg Deadlifts – 2 sets of 15
Hack Squats – 1 set of 8 and 1 set of 20

Friday 1: Upper Day Two
Incline Dumbbell Press – 2 sets of 8-12
Dumbbell Military Press – 2 sets of 12
Dips – 2 sets of 12 (add weight if necessary)
Wide Grip Pulldowns – 2 sets of 10
Deadlifts – 1 set of 8 and 1 set of 4

Monday 2: Lower Day Two
Alternate Dumbbell Curls – 2 sets of 12
Weighted Rope Twists – 3 sets with as much weight as possible
Leg Press Calf Raises – 1 set of 15 (with 5 second pause at bottom)
Lying Leg Curls – 2 sets of 12
Squats – 1 set of 8 and 1 set of 20

Wednesday 2: Upper Day Three
Decline Bench Press – 2 sets of 8-12
Machine Shoulder Press – 2 sets of 8
Close Grip Bench Press – 2 sets of 15
Rack Chins – 2 sets taken to failure
T-Bar Rows – 2 sets of 10

Friday 2: Lower Day Three
Preacher Dumbbell Curls – 2 sets of 12
Zottman Curls – 2 sets of 15
Standing Calf Raises – 1 set of 15 (with 5 second hold at bottom)
Sumo Press – 2 sets of 15
Leg Press – 1 set of 20 taken to failure

Abs - Abdominals should be trained twice per week, on off days. Keep the training short – 2-3 sets. Train them heavy and in the 8-12 rep range. Key exercises are weighted decline situps, weighted knee raises, and swiss ball crunches.

        As you can tell, this routine is low volume. This will help you to keep your muscles looking full since you will burn less muscle glycogen. Also, low volume routines are better for dieters due to the fact that they are running on minimum fuel. These workouts are quick, which allows you to stimulate your muscles without using 20-30 sets. It is also safer. You are more likely to injure yourself when dieting, and this routine doesn’t allow someone to overdo it in the gym.

CARDIO - Cardio is absolutely crucial to a successful fat loss program. The cardio I believe in performing is different than what most people use, but it WILL work. My cardio regimen ties in with my diet plan to turn you into a fat burning demon. Cardio should be performed first thing in the morning, on an empty stomach. It should be done every day of the week, except on days that you train lower body in the gym. As soon as you wake up, you hit the treadmill. I believe in slow cardio. Each cardio session consists of 45-60 minutes on the treadmill at a SLOW PACE on an incline. Aim for around 3.5-4 MPH on as steep of an incline as you can handle. When the cardio session seems easy to you, you increase your incline level instead of your speed. This kind of cardio will actually have your body turn to stored fat as fuel instead of the usual carbohydrates.

         It is important to realize that it isn’t just the diet or just the cardio that will allow you to burn crazy amounts of fat. The weight lifting, the cardio, and the diet all combine to make your body burn fat for fuel instead of muscle. Expect to burn around 1 to 1.5 pounds of fat per week on this plan. If you want to lose more or less fat per week, changes can be made to accommodate for your plans. Your caloric deficit is one of the main determinants of how much fat you lose. If you want to drop weight quicker, lower your daily caloric intake by 250 calories. This will add up to another half pound per week of weight that you will lose. It is important to know, however, that the body does not want to burn all of that fat off too quickly. If you rush the fat loss process, you will end up losing some of your hard earned muscle.

       Well, there you have it. With this plan, you can transform your body in a matter of weeks. As long as you realize that there are many factors that determine your ability to build muscle and lose fat. If you  take them all into consideration, you WILL be successful. The knowledge is all here for you – how you use it is up to you.

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                                                                             Lucas from Delaware